My first conversation with Ralph Klein — and the $3.3-billion scoop that came out of it: Jason Fekete

Jason Fekete, Postmedia News03.30.2013

Stuart Gradon-post After leaving government, Ralph Klein became a consultant and journalism chair at Mount Royal University.Stuart Gradon, Postmedia News Files
/ Postmedia News; With Files From James Wood, Calgary Herald, And The Edmonton Journal

Ralph Klein joins Calgary Olympic mascots Hidy and Howdy to show off a new sign on the TransCanada Highway outside the Canada Olympic Park.Garth Pritchard
/ CNS files

Ralph Klein berates the homeless:. At around 1 a.m. December 12, 2001, a visibly intoxicated Klein, while premier of Alberta, had his chauffeur drive him to Calgary's Herb Jamieson Centre, a government-supported shelter for homeless men. Witnesses say that soon after entering the 249-bed centre, Klein began shouting and swearing at a number of the homeless. Slurring his words, the Tory premier yelled repeatedly at them to get jobs, then threw money on the lobby floor and stormed out...
/ PNG files

Ralph Klein, one of the most popular as well as controversial premiers in Alberta history, died Friday at age 70.Leah Hennel, Postmedia News Files
/ Postmedia News; With Files From James Wood, Calgary Herald, And The Edmonton Journal

The first time I ever met former Alberta premier Ralph Klein in person was in 2004, when he was still wildly popular in booming Wild Rose Country.

I had only been a political reporter at the Calgary Herald for a few months, but an assignment to cover Klein at a local community event turned into a huge scoop and told me a lot of what I needed to know about the man everyone called “Ralph.”

I arrived at the event, held at the Pioneer’s Lodge in Calgary — atop an escarpment overlooking much of the city — to find Klein mingling with seniors, something he truly seemed to enjoy.

Having been stuck in rush-hour traffic, I missed the brief remarks Klein gave to the crowd. No biggie. There was no announcement or anything extremely newsworthy in his remarks (after reviewing a copy of his speech).

I decided to stick around and introduce myself to Klein. He was so comfortable mingling with Albertans — and reporters — that we wandered out to the front deck of the lodge, no handlers to be seen.

As we enjoyed the panoramic view and late-afternoon sun, we just started chatting about issues of the day: energy prices, provincial revenues and infrastructure demands from a rapidly growing population.

That’s when Klein dropped a news bomb: Alberta was going to announce $3.3 billion in new infrastructure spending for Alberta communities!!

Approximately $1 billion each for Calgary and Edmonton and the remaining cash to be split among the rest of the province. The money was to be spent on roads, bridges and transit projects.

I recall a number of things going through my head: “Wow, Ralph IS a nice guy”; “Why is he talking to me with out his media handlers?”; “Where IS his press secretary anyway?”; “Wow, this is great, chatting with the premier”; “$3.3 billion – that’s a lot of cash!”; “Is this new cash?”; “Is he REALLY announcing $3.3 billion in new spending to me in our casual chat!?”; “Why is he telling me this!?”; “Who cares Jason, go with it!”

Turns out he, indeed, did announce $3.3 billion in new spending to me.

After checking on the details with his handlers — who by this point were hitting the panic button trying to squeeze the news genie back into the bottle until they could appropriately announce it — the Herald ran the story on the front page.

And I was very quickly introduced to Ralph Klein.

I learned that my first conversation with “Ralph” was a true reflection of the man: He was a nice guy. He was approachable. He enjoyed chatting more with average Albertans than spending time at fancy banquets. He liked to leak information to reporters, whether or not he meant to do it.

Klein left his mark across Alberta — one that will never be forgotten or fade in the history books.

It took all of 30 seconds for Klein to leave his mark on a young political reporter.

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.

Share

My first conversation with Ralph Klein — and the $3.3-billion scoop that came out of it: Jason Fekete

A Radio-Canada reporter has been arrested for alleged criminal harassment while pursuing the subject of a story. According to Radio-Canada, reporter Antoine Trépanier was arrested Tuesday night by Gatineau police. He was released on a promise to appear in court. Trépanier was called by Gatineau police Tuesday evening and an officer requested that he come […]

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.